Rosa Félix v. Medina Calderón

89 P.R. 446
CourtSupreme Court of Puerto Rico
DecidedNovember 26, 1963
DocketNo. 199
StatusPublished

This text of 89 P.R. 446 (Rosa Félix v. Medina Calderón) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Puerto Rico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rosa Félix v. Medina Calderón, 89 P.R. 446 (prsupreme 1963).

Opinion

Mr. Justice Hernández Matos

delivered the opinion of the Court.

In November 1957 Nicolás Rosa actually and physically possessed in good faith and as owner, a small parcel of land which he operated, measuring 5.50 cuerdas in the ward of Jiménez of the Municipality of Rio Grande. That parcel was surrounded by lands of a 22-cuerda property belonging to Acisclo Medina Calderón — the person who had granted to him his rights over that parcel — and by other properties of the ward, and it did not have its own exit to a public road. Medina Calderon had granted him the right-of-way through his property of 22 cuerdas and as far as the public highway known as El Verde, for the purposes of operating that parcel, for which reason during the 1955 and 1956 crop seasons Nicolás Rosa had transported the cane cultivated therein across the land of Medina Calderón.

As a result of acts performed by Alejandrino and Acisclo Medina Gómez, sons of Medina Calderón, which prevented all traffic through the 22-cuerda property to El Verde highway, Nicolás Rosa filed a civil action against Acisclo Medina [449]*449Calderón, his aforesaid two sons and against ten others of his children. The amended complaint filed in that suit was answered by practically all the defendants. The trial was held on June 11 and 12, 1959.

Judgment was rendered on the following July 16 sustaining the complaint, it being provided therein as follows:

“In view of the preceding findings of fact and conclusions of law, the complaint is sustained and defendants Acisclo Medina Gómez and Alejandrino Medina Gómez are hereby ordered to abstain from preventing plaintiff herein to enter or leave his property by the road referred to in this judgment. They are hereby ordered to eliminate the obstructions created therein by the fence erected; they may not install such fence in the place where it stands at present, either by themselves or through their family, employees, agents, lessees, assignees or tenants. They are further ordered to permit and not to interrupt plaintiff in the use of that road to transfer the crops and other produce from his farm to the road which leads to El Verde and across the whole length of that road.
“Defendants are hereby ordered to pay to plaintiff the sum of $3,000 for damages, plus the sum of $500 for attorney’s fees, and the costs incurred by plaintiff as a result of this suit.”

We have carefully read and analyzed the transcript of the evidence and the documentary evidence offered by both parties. The evidence as a whole admitted by the trial court establishes that the findings of fact made by the trial judge —not substantially challenged by appellants — clearly represent the most rational, fair and legal balance which may be made in the process of its weighing and evaluation.1 Defendants-appellants did not move for reconsideration of the judgment, nor requested the formulation of new or additional findings, or the elimination or modification of those made.

The facts, events, and concurring circumstances are so clearly and accurately stated that we deem it convenient to [450]*450insert here the following findings of fact made by the trial court:

“Based on the evidence offered, the court finds proved the following facts:
“On July 10, 1954, Nicolás Rosa purchased from Acisclo Medina Calderón and his wife certain property in the ward of Jiménez of Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. That property is equivalent to one-sixth part of another property of 33 cuerdas situated in the same ward. Although by deed No. 59, executed on July 10, 1954, before Notary Pedro N. Sánchez, an undivided interest of one-sixth part of the aforementioned property was sold to plaintiff, actually a property of 5*4 cuerdas which is bounded on the north and east by lands of Acisclo Medina Calderón and his wife Juana Gómez was delivered to plaintiff.
“The only existing public road is that known as Carretera del Verde which extends from highway No. 3, from San Juan to Luquillo, as far as the Girl Scouts’ Camp. This is a paved road of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
“Acisclo Medina and his wife own a parcel of land which separates plaintiff’s property from the aforementioned road.
“Plaintiff’s property is fully devoted to sugarcane.
“When Acisclo Medina Calderón sold the same to plaintiff, he bound himself by the terms of the fourth clause of the deed of sale to grant a right-of-way through his property adjoining plaintiff’s parcel, in order that the latter could take out the fruits and produce of his farm by such servitude.
“Long before the said deed of sale was executed there existed a road which, starting at the boundary of both parcels, extended through defendant’s property as far as El Verde road.
“Prior to the execution of the aforesaid deed of sale, Acisclo Medina Gómez and his wife and Alejandrino Medina Gómez and his wife had constructed their respective residences on the property of Acisclo Medina Calderón.
“Both Acisclo Medina Gómez and Alejandrino Medina Gómez had knowledge of the transaction carried out by their parents with plaintiff, and knew for a fact of the existence of the road by which the cane was taken out from the property acquired by plaintiff.
[451]*451“Subsequent to the filing of this complaint steps were taken in order to permit plaintiff to take out his cane through the property of plaintiff [sic].
“The place which Acisclo Medina Calderón and his wife claim should be used for these purposes is clearly inadequate. The lands of plaintiff’s property and that of defendant are very rugged. There is a lowland between the .property of plaintiff and that of defendant. This means that in order to take out cane from plaintiff’s property, it is necessary to go down to the bottom and then upgrade as far as the road.
“After this complaint was filed steps were taken in order that defendant would permit plaintiff to take out the cane from his property until the court should decide this case.
“The place where defendant claims plaintiff should take out his cane is physically inadequate for such purpose.
“Codefendants Acisclo Medina Gómez and Alejandrino Medina Gómez have closed and fenced the only adequate exit which was always used as such to take out the produce from plaintiff’s property.
“As a result of these acts of defendants, plaintiff has been unable to cut cane in the crop seasons corresponding to 1957-58 and 1958-59.
“On August 26, 1957, Acisclo Medina Calderón and his wife Juana Gómez executed before Notary Manuel Benitez Flores a deed of Segregation and Sale of a parcel of land of one cuerda from the main property in favor of Acisclo Medina Gómez and his wife, and on the same date Acisclo Medina Calderón and his wife Juana Gómez executed deed No. 16 before the same Notary, transferring in favor of their son, Alejandrino Medina Gómez, and his wife Adelina Villafañe, another parcel of one cuerda also segregated from the main property.

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Bluebook (online)
89 P.R. 446, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rosa-felix-v-medina-calderon-prsupreme-1963.